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I have a little problem. I'm addicted to cookbooks, food writing, recipe collecting, and cooking. I have a lot of recipes waiting for me to try them, and ideas from articles, tv, and restaurants often lead to new dishes. I started losing track of what I've done. So now I'm taking photos and writing about what I've prepared—unless it's terrible in which case I forget it ever happened.

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Monday, December 27, 2010

About a year ago, I brought home a copy of Stir: Mixing It Up in the Italian Tradition and have enjoyed cooking several meals from it since then. That book is by James Beard Award-winner Chef Barbara Lynch of Boston. Her early experience included working with some of Boston’s other great chefs such as Todd English, traveling in Italy, and being named one of Food and Wine’s Best New Chefs in America. Since 1998, Barbara has operated her own Boston restaurant, No. 9 Park, and two additional restaurants, B&G Oysters and The Butcher Shop, opened in 2003. A few years later, five more businesses were opened including a catering company, a bar dedicated to craft cocktails, and Stir which is a demonstration kitchen and cookbook store. Last spring, her latest fine dining restaurant, Menton, opened in the Fort Point neighborhood. Barbara leads all of these businesses as CEO of Barbara Lynch Gruppo, and her many recognitions include being named Best Chef by Boston Magazine and No. 9 Park being named one of the Top 50 Restaurants in America by Travel and Leisure. I was curious about what books such a busy and talented chef would find interesting, so I asked her what are you reading?

Barbara:

Eggsby Michel RouxI adore eggs, and there is so much technique involved in perfectly cooking this everyday ingredient. In the hands of the French, eggs may be transformed into incredible dishes…from airy souffles to luscious aiolis. This book from the brilliant Chef Roux is really a must-have for any cookbook collection—it combines lessons on technique with both basic and “fancy” recipes and is a great reference for egg cookery.

Blood, Bones and Butter by Gabrielle HamiltonOne of the perks of owning my own cookbook store (Stir) is getting advanced releases on some of the much anticipated books throughout the year! One of these isBlood, Bones and Butter. I love Gabrielle Hamilton, and her restaurant Prune is one of my favorites in NYC. I started reading her book and couldn’t put it down—in fact, I’ve reread it twice. Gabrielle’s writing is honest and gutsy, and it is a terrific read! This book comes out in March, and I can’t wait for others to read it.

Thank you for participating, Barbara. Check back to see who answers the question next time and what other books are recommended.